Memory of jazz legend to be honored
By Laman Ismayilova
Memory of jazz legend Vagif Mustafazade will be honored. A series of events timed to the musician's the 40th death anniversary will be held in Baku.
A memorable evening will be held at Vagif Mustafazade House-Museum on December 16.
Works of Vagif Mustafazade and his daughter Aziza Mustafazade will be performed by the students of Baku Academy of Music.
The presentation of the disc "Jazz Mugham", published in Moscow (Russia), will take place.
Head of Vagif Mustafazade Cultural and Charitable Fund Afag Aliyeva told Trend Life that four more music albums will be presented with the support of the Ministry of Culture.
The first album will feature music pieces performed by "Seville", the second one includes the works of Tofig Guliyev edited by Vagif Mustafazade.
The third album is "Jazz improvisations" includes all the hits of the musician.
The fourth disc "Dedication" contains his best works and includes George Gershwin’s composition "The Man I Love." Vagif Mustafazade was only 9 years old when he first performed this work.
Vagif Mustafazade is the founder of Azerbaijani jazz mugham movement that emerged in the late 1960s and 1970s in Baku, as a result of the mixture of these two styles.
Throughout years, he wrote numerous jazz compositions, including fugues, preludes, ballads and scherzos, many of them written in the 1970s. He released a total of eight albums, all with different line-ups, mood and style.
By the beginning of 1960s, Vagif was gaining recognition outside of Azerbaijan.
Winner of numerous jazz festivals such as "Tallinn-66", "Tallinn-67", Baku festival "Jazz 69", Donetsk 1977 festival, and "Tbilisi-78", Vagif Mustafazadeh always fascinated listeners with his originality and virtuosity.
Musician's death was a shock to many people. He was only 39 years old when he died on stage while performing in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) in 1979.
Jazz schools around the world have recognized Vagif Mustafazadeh as a phenomenal musician. His works represent a unique combination of eastern and western schools, of tradition and innovation.
---
Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova
Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz